A great variety of designs and manufacturing processes for airbag housings and related mounting hardware has developed over the years. Some of these housings provide specific mounting features for positioning and retaining the housing within a particular vehicle model, or class of vehicles. Similarly, a great degree of design specificity is often required for mounting and retaining various sub-components of the housing, for instance, the respective retainers for the inflator and for the airbag. Because of the strict sizing and design requirements, airbag housings generally do not enjoy a high degree of versatility. An airbag housing designed for particular sub-components may be unwieldy or even unusable in circumstances where different sub-components are desirable. Likewise, a housing intended for use in a sport utility vehicle, for example, may not be suitable for mounting in a compact car due to the differing dimensions of the vehicle structures.
Many airbag housings are manufactured by conventional stamping processes, in which the housing body is stamped and folded from a single piece or small number of pieces of metal plate stock. While the end product is relatively rigid, and simple to fully assemble, a significant amount of waste material can be produced from the large number and volume of stampings required. Additionally, it is often necessary to operate the equipment at relatively high tonnages, consuming substantial amounts of power. Moreover, retooling is often necessary where housings are to be manufactured to differing specifications, increasing both costs and equipment downtime.
The present invention is directed to one or more of the problems or shortcomings associated with the related art.